Curse of the Moon, Secrets of a Teacher
by nerdyheart15
Summary: with Mizuki's betrayel things goor spiraling out of control for Iruka Umino. Now his secrets are being found out with out his knowing, will he be able to handle the new presssure, and will people accept him as the loving person he truly is?
1. Chapter 1

**Curse of the Moon, Secrets of a Teacher**

"Iruka Umino, you need to take care of this wound, you're lucky the nurse could take out all the silver before it became serious." The Sandaime looked at the young sensei that was lying on his stomach.

"I'm aware Hokage." The current Hokage looked down at the young teacher before him. Questions raced through his mind, but he knew the answers to all of them. He could always read the expressions on the young man's face.

"He knew."

Silence and a few tears that streaked down the chunin's face was his only answer. They both knew that this situation could have turned out to be far worse, if it wasn't for the academy teacher's keen senses. They both knew that the young boy with the sky blue eyes and an odd obsession with orange would have been killed, if it wasn't for Iruka.

"Will Naruto be punished?" Iruka turned his chocolate brown gaze to the dark wise one. He hoped that the young boy would never be punished; it would be unfair to a child who only knew suffering.

"No, Naruto helped catch a traitor; he is a young hero in my eyes." The Hokage offered the academy teacher a warm smile and sat down gently next to him. "Is Mizuki the only one that knows?"

"No one knows about me besides you and your sons." Iruka looked away once more from the kind gaze of a man he loved as family. "I… I can't believe, he would do something like this. I thought I could trust him."

"I know this is difficult for you, but Mizuki was only using you since the very beginning. You are a kind person, with a big heart, a terrible loss, and in your eyes a horrifying secret. He took advantage of that and turned against you." The Sandaime rubbed the younger man's back gently, keeping away from the fresh wound in a comforting notion. "There are many people in this village who care about you and who would never betray your trust. Don't let one person's actions destroy your kind nature."

Iruka smiled up at him and closed his eyes. He enjoyed the feeling of the man's comforting hand on his back, and the general warmth that was the Sandaime. They both stayed there for a little while, enjoying each other's silent company.

"This will scar you know, because of the silver." Iruka let out a shaky chuckle and smiled up at the Hokage.

"I think I should tell Naruto." The Hokage knew that this statement was more of a request for permission. He smiled and shook the mocha strands of the young teacher.

"I think you should tell your secret to whomever you like, Iruka. Not all people will betray your trust, and if anyone can understand your situation, it would be that troublesome kid."

"You sound just like a lazy student of mine. That Nara boy is always saying the word 'troublesome' like Asuma smokes cigarettes." The statement about his son and his horrible habit made the Sandaime give a hearty chuckle.

"Yes, I believe my son will have an interesting time with Shikamaru in his genin team." Iruka smiled at the thought of the smoker having to deal with someone as difficult and lazy as the young genin. "Although it might be good for him, he spends too much time chasing after Kurenai."

"So his crush never went away then." Iruka smiled at the memories of a younger Asuma being constantly turned down by the beautiful ninja.

"You know, it wouldn't be bad for you to have a relationship. It could be healthy seeing a woman who is older than twelve." Iruka rolled his eyes but the smile did not fade.

"With his temper, the woman would have to be crazy." Iruka rolled his eyes as the subject of their previous conversation walked in. Asuma stood next to his father and looked up and down the teacher's bandaged back. "That's going to leave a wicked looking scar. I'm guessing Mizuki used a weapon with silver in it."

"Yeah, I suppose. Is the package for me?" Asuma gave Iruka a smile before handing over the container to him. He then helped the teacher into a sitting position careful not to touch the still healing wound on his back.

"You better enjoy that kid; I got the best from the Akimichi clan." Iruka smiled and set the contents in his lap and opened the white container slowly enjoying the smell of raw meat. He took a few bites and enjoyed the taste. "You know I'll never get used to the disgusting look of a human eating raw meat."

Iruka gave him a sharp glare between bites of his meal, but never said anything more. His body was demanding food to replenish the energy it lost in trying to distract the silver from his back. Asuma gave a good chuckle and turned to look at his father. He noticed that the old man seemed tired as he usually did, but he had a small smile on his face. They were both relieved to find out that the teacher wasn't killed by last night's events, and that the only thing wrong with him would be the wound on his back.

"Well, I would hate to leave you, but I must discuss last night's events with the village elders and council." Sandaime once again ruffled Iruka's hair and turned his gaze towards his son. Asuma looked back, and they both understood the clear understanding that Iruka would need more than just physical healing.

"Have a good rest of the day Sandaime." Iruka watched the Hokage leave the room while Asuma watched him. He noticed that because of the silver in the weapon he was healing much slower than usual and that whenever he moved his arms he would wince and then tries to hide it.

"Iruka, if you ever need anything at all, you know I'm here for you; even if I have to scratch behind your ears and buy you the most expensive raw meat in the village." Iruka glared at him but the smile on his face never went away.

"Thanks Asuma." They sat in a comfortable silence while Iruka ate his meal. When he was finished he put the container back in the bag and slowly turned around to lie on his stomach once more. The jounin took this as his cue to leave and started walking out the door.

"Bye Kid, try not to scare away any of the pretty nurses with that temper of yours." Asuma gave him a warm smile and turned around.

"Kurenai told me she always wanted a small window box to hold flowers outside her apartment window." Asuma stopped and turned around at the now smirking chunin. "Her favorite color is also red, and she likes poppies." Iruka laughed at the flustered looking smoker and gave him a small chuckle. "I may have a bad temper, but with your looks and bad habits you need all the help you can get." Asuma glared at Iruka and gave him the middle figure which only caused the teacher to laugh more.

"See you in the usual place in three days Iruka. Don't be late." The teacher gave a tired smile before lying back down and falling into a deep sleep.

…

"You know there is a monster that teaches at the academy, not as bad as that demon-fox brat, but just as deadly." Mizuki looked to his cell mate with a wicked grin on his face. He looked to the other side of the cell to see the guard who was giving the talking pair his full intention.

"Who the hell are you talking about new guy? If there really was someone deadly teaching the children wouldn't they be here right next to your sorry ass?" The prisoner looked at his new white haired cell mate with annoyance. If the new guy wanted a guard to listen to his ramblings he shouldn't have picked the wicked purple haired female.

"The teacher that helped brought me down and protected the fox brat." Mizuki stopped to look over at the guard stationed and noticed that she tilted her head towards them just a tiny bit. "He was attacked back when we were all genin. He wasn't in the same team as I was, but he told me all his secrets a few months ago. The guy is a monster and a killer, and he teaches children!"

Anko Mitarashi leaned into the conversation going on between her former classmate and the other criminal. Normally she wouldn't care about such ploys for her attention, but she knew Iruka from the academy days. She also currently worked with his sensei from his genin days.

"If he is so deadly, why the hell hasn't the Hokage killed the fucker?" The criminal was now as interested as the guard was.

"Because he has the Hokage wrapped around his finger. Think about it, he probably convinced the senile old man that he could be of some use and to keep him alive. Plus, he was a kid when it happened to him and we all know that the Sandaime has a soft spot for brats." Anko rolled her eyes at Mizuki's speech, but she couldn't help finding herself more and more interested about what he said. They were talking about Iruka. The bi-polar, shy sensei with amazing aim and the funniest blush she had ever seen. There was no way a wan like that could be a monster, let alone keep a secret that he was one.

"So is he like the demon fox?" Mizuki gave the criminal a wolfish grin and turned to see that his plan was working. He had the guard listening to his every word.

"No, unlike the little brat he doesn't have a seal on him to keep the monster at bay. The guy told me that the monster would come out whenever he let his emotions take over him, and three times a month when the moon is at its fullest." Anko widened her eyen in shock. If anything Mizuki said was true, then Iruka certainly did suffer from something extremely horrific, and dangerous. She had only learned about it in advanced training, and from old files of prisoners she had to read for her job.

"That is enough yapping you two, lights out for everyone." Anko quickly went and got a different guard to hold her place. She needed answers, and the only place she could get them was from her boss. She walked to his office in determination and opened the door.

"Anko, I thought I had you on guard duty as a punishment for last week." Ibiki Morino raised a scared eyebrow and gave her a fierce glare.

"Not know Ibiki, I need answers on why the hell that fucker Mizuki is calling Iruka a monster." Anko had her fists curled and they were shaking. In her mind no one had the right to call anyone a monster. Especially Iruka who was always kind to her even after she returned from Orochimaru's clutches.

"I was afraid Mizuki might know the truth, it would explain the silver." He motioned for his subordinate to sit down in the chair across from his own. "Anko, you must understand that word cannot get out about this, it would ruin the kid's life."

"So it's all true then, what Mizuki said about Iruka. That he is a monster." Anko felt slightly hurt from all the information that was kept from her.

"That kid is not and never will be a monster." Ibiki sighed and rubbed his temples slowly. This whole situation was becoming more and more complicated by the minute. "I'm only going to tell you the basics about the situation and nothing else. If the kid wants to tell you, then he will tell you. But _none_ of what I'm going to tell you leaves this room. Are we clear?"

"Yes sir." Anko got herself in a more comfortable position and helped herself to the tea that was available at her superior's desk.

"I'll start from the beginning…"

**Author's Note:**

So I've recently rejoined the crazy ride that is Naruto. I've decided to write this little story because Iruka is one of my favorite characters and I have an obsession with werewolves. I'm not sure if I am going to add any pairings yet, or if I'll add a second main character to the story. I do want to get to the time skip to when Naruto is more bad ass and Tsunade comes in because she is just plain awesome. I don't have a beta so please excuse my mistakes and let me know about them. I'm also a little rusty on cannon so if I get something majorly wrong let me know, but this story will probably follow most of canon and take place during the time skip. I'm not sure yet (haha, indecisive author is indecisive.) So please leave a review, and if you have any comments or suggestions for the story let me know in the review! THANKS :D


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2 **

"Iruka's team was killed only two months after graduation. They were found slaughtered near their campsite on their first mission outside the village. According to the documents it was a simple scroll delivery c-rank mission. Iruka doesn't remember everything about the night, but he told me about the massive beast that had killed his team." Ibiki took a long drag of his tea and wished he hadn't run out of his 'special' ingredient that afternoon. It wasn't particularly hard to tell the start of the young teacher's hard past, but it was hard telling someone a secret that wasn't his.

"Oh... that must have been hard for him." Anko was being only quiet for her personality, but she wanted to hear all the details she could. Even though Ibiki had just agreed to tell her all je knew without getting too specific, it was still valuable information on her friend.

"I suppose that's the right reaction given the person, but in my opinion he uses his 'curse' more as a gift." Ibiki thought about what else Anko might need to know while she contemplated the information given to her.

"I guess this explains his fiery temper, and how it's nearly impossible to sneak up on the guy." Ibiki gave a small smile at Anko's reasoning.

"Hm. He certainly does use his heightened senses to good use. It is one of the reasons he can control those hell like children he calls students." Anko laughed at that's statement and Ibiki gave another small smile.

"I'm guessing cell number 315 belongs to him." Anko had gone past the cell a few times; it was completely closed off with special sound barrier seals. There were claw marks all over the concrete floors and walls.

"He goes there when he can't control the change. Whenever his emotions get the best of him he will teleport straight to my office and then I move him in there and activate the sound barrier." Ibiki gave a small sigh and pored himself some more tea. "It's hard to watch, but thankfully he hasn't lost control since he started teaching. I have no tucking clue why, but those kids seem to calm him down."

"Is it painful, the transformation?" Anko already knew the answer, but she still felt like she could ask.

"From what I've seen, yes." Ibiki closed his eyes as memories began to flood his brain. "His second time changing was in that cell and it was the hardest thing to watch, especially since he was a child. I can only imagine how difficult the first night was for him."

"How did you find out?" Anko wanted to know all she could about her friend's horrific situation. So she could help him if he needs it.

"Shikaku Nara found the poor kid on his land next to a half-eaten deer unconscious. He brought him to the Hokage. Then the lazy guy just left and said he wasn't going to press charges, or be involved at all." Ibiki paused and remembered how much kindness he showed the kid. "Iruka doesn't even know that Shikaku knows."

"It would have been to 'troublesome' a situation to be involved in." Ibiki laughed at Anko's mention of the clan's infamous catch phrase.

"After that the Sandaime asked me to bring him into a cell so he wouldn't do anymore damage." The phrase 'or to bite someone else' was not stated. "After that I took over the kid's training. It was just him and I instead of the usual genin team. I taught him how to control his temper so he wouldn't change unless he wanted to. We also went over how to properly use his new heightened senses and strength." Ibiki grimaced at the remembrance of all the broken items he had to constantly replace because his student had broken them.

"That was... well to be frank, that doesn't sound like something you would do at all." Anko gave him a questioning look that told him to explain why he did it at all.

"The Hokage paired us up because he knew I would be able to toughen him up so the poor kid wouldn't fall apart. He also thought the kid's kindness would remind me how to act outside the walls of this building."

"Did it work?" Anko was holding back a smile the best she could. She heard stories about how her boss was when he first started and how he would scare people with his aura alone.

"I suppose, though I still seem to scare some people shitless." He paused at Anko's burst of laughter and offered another small smile.

"Did you teach him anything else, besides control and how to not kill people?" Anko was hopping that Ibiki would tell her more so she wouldn't have to ask Iruka at all.

"I taught him silver tolerance." Anko sighed and gave a defeated look. Of course he wouldn't tell her more than just that.

"So you tortured him with silver till he put up enough of a tolerance that it wouldn't kill him on contact?" It was more of a statement then a question.

"It had to be done. If I didn't do that, he wouldn't be alive now."

...

"Honestly Iruka, I wanted him to get the hint. You didn't have to tell him my favorite flower. What is the point of that?" Kurenai gave the bed bound teacher an exasperated look.

"Well Asuma us an idiot who needs all the help he can get. He's been chasing after you for years, and by the looks of your blush I would say he is one hell of a kisser." Iruka laughed gently at the surprised look he got from the beautiful jonin.

"How the hell did you know?" She gave him the look she always gave him when he found out about something no one else knew. "And don't you dare tell me you can 'smell' him on me or one of your bother ridiculous excuses."

"I don't know why you won't believe that. It is true." Iruka sighed and grabbed his friend's hand. "You two belong together, I can tell. He makes you happy."

"Well, I guess that means I have you to thank." She gave the teacher a gentle hug and a small kiss in the forehead. "But don't think this means you're off the hook." She let him go and gave him a sad smile. "I don't know why you won't tell me your secret; but of you ever need someone to talk to, I'm here. I won't betray your trust."

"Kurenai I... I want..." The red eyed woman put a finger against his lips.

"With what Mizuki did to you, I can understand your hesitation. I've known you since you were in diapers Iruka." She gave him a warm smile and another small hug before getting up to leave.

"Tell Asuma I want you there with Naruto." Kurenai turned around and gave him a questioning look. "Asuma will explain more."

"I promise I won't ever hurt you." She gave him little wave and walked out the door to leave Iruka with his thoughts.

"I just hope I won't hurt you."

...

"So how is your genin team?" Asuma looked at his bored looking silver haired friend.

"Maah, I could have had worse. You?" Kakashi Hatake continued his look of boredom, when in truth he was pleasantly surprised by his new strange team. They held promise in their future skills and they were a guarantee that he would never have a bored day.

"It's tradition for my family to teach the Ino- Shika- Cho combination team. I just happened to get the most difficult one. Ino won't shut the hell up, Choji only eats, and Shikamaru is more impossible then his father." Asuma took a long drag from his cigarette before continuing. "But, they have some surprises."

"Maybe you'll stop smoking those death sticks to set a good example." Kurenai gave Asuma a light push and laughed at his girlish blush.

"I'll stop smoking the day Kakashi shows his face." The silver haired man in question only rolled his eyes at his friend's words. Asuma has seen his face on a few occasions and is one of the few people to know why he wears it in the first place.

"If I were to take off my mask, all the girls would come running to me. Including the one you brainwashed to be your girlfriend." Kakashi gave a small grin beneath his mask and put his hands around Kurenai's shoulders.

"You are such a pervert." Asuma gave him a mock hurt look and grabbed Kurenai's hands in a possessive gesture. "Hands off would ya, it took me forever for her to say yes."

"And you needed help to do it, idiot." Kurenai and Kakashi laughed at their fellow jonin as he tried to come up with a comeback. "So, have you heard anything from Guy lately?"

"Alas the great Green Beast of Konoha has not been in contact with me." Kakashi refused to tell his friends about the letters he received weekly from his 'eternal rival', and best friend.

"Oh you miss him and you know it Hatake." Kakashi turned around to a very flustered looking Genma Shiranui.

"What the hell happened to you?" Asuma looked at the special jonin who looked as if he went to hell and back.

"Mission Room happened." The others noticed his slight shiver at the mention of the room. "Sandaime has me covering the shifts of the teacher that was attacked four days ago. I swear its hell in there. Apparently this teacher is the only guy that can keep everyone in line, and he is only a chunin!" Genma sat down at a bar stool in defeat.

"Well Iruka-sensei is a scary man when he is angry. Just ask Asuma." Kurenai laughed lightly the look her lover gave her.

"Hm, I remember Naruto mentioning him this morning. It was something about ramen and hospitals." Kakashi was barely interested on his genin's ramblings. He usually just tuned him out with some Icha Icha after he said the words 'hokage' or 'ramen'.

"Yeah, Iruka tends to spoil the kid with ramen every chance he can get." Asuma looked out the window and noticed how low the sun had gotten. "Well I hate to just leave, but I've got stuff to do tonight." Asuma walked out with Kurenai in tow.

"I just hope this Iruka guy gets better soon, I can't stand working a day in that room any longer." Genma took one last swing from the sake he had ordered and left leaving Kakashi alone.

"Maah, yet another boring night."

**Author's Note:**

And so ends chapter two. I wrote this one entirely on my phone (not an easy thing to do) so I could get it out earlier. I'm not so sure if I wrote Ibiki right, I think he smiles too many times. I love all the characters that pop up here, and I especially love Kurenai and Asuma (one of the cutest couples, besides the adorable Kushina and Minato.) If any of the characters seem off please let me know in a review. I take my information from Naruto Wiki since I haven't seen the Anime/ Manga in such a long time. I think next chapter will be shorter and then after that I will have a mini time skip to get the flow of the story going. I'm so excited to write about Guy. Comments, concerns, questions, and corrections please leave in a review!

Oh and the beast will be seen next chapter.

:D


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

"I hate this part." Iruka let out a painful chuckle at the jonin's comment.

"Try having all your bones rearranged and then you can 'hate this part'." Asuma helped the chunin onto his feet after he lost his footing on a tree root.

"It's just hard to watch, no one should go through this." Asuma said this statement softly as he remembered all the times his younger friend has gone through his transformation. He could only imagine how much additional pain there was with the wound to his back. "Does it get any easier?"

"The pain never really goes away, but it goes by faster." Iruka as if on cue let out a sharp gasp of pain. Asuma started to rub his lower back in a comforting notion but pulled his hand away when he felt Iruka's spine shift and reposition.

"Do you need me to leave you in the usual spot?" Asuma knew that his friend liked to be put someplace where he couldn't watch him change, but tonight had different circumstances.

"Yeah that wou ..." Iruka speech was interrupted by a painful moan and he fell to the ground. Asuma watched as the teacher began to growl and tear at his hospital clothes. "Go... I..."

"I got it; I'll be back in a little while with Naruto and Kurenai." Asuma turned away and began walking to where he told Kurenai to bring Naruto. Iruka's transformation had started a little earlier than usual but that could be from his need to release his negative emotions from his friend's recent betrayal. He winced at the sound of cracking bones and inhuman howls of pain.

Asuma never knew how his father or brother could stay for the entire transformation. It was not only hard to watch but painful to listen to. A human body should not reposition itself into a canine's body. No one, especially someone as kindhearted as Iruka, should go through this much pain every month for the rest of their lives.

...

"Kurenai- sensei, do you have any idea why Asuma- sensei would want us to meet in the middle of the forest?" Kurenai looked to the young blonde addressing her and gave him a soft smile. In truth she had no idea why Asuma asked her to pick up Naruto and bring him to the odd location.

"All I know is that Iruka has something important to tell us, and that for some odd reason or another he wanted to tell us here." She studied the young boy's face. He looked calm, but when she looked in his eyes she could see a small hint of worry.

"Well he better treat me to some ramen for making me go all the way out here without a good reason!" The boy gave a pose that would make even Might Guy envious. Kurenai smiled with him.

"With all the ramen Iruka buys you, he should own

Ramen Ichiraku." Kurenai put her guard down when she saw her lover walk in from a small forest path. He had a worried expression on his face which did nothing to calm her nerves.

"What the hell is going on?" Naruto ran up to Asuma and stood in front of him. Asuma gave Naruto a comforting smile and put his large hand on the boys' shoulder.

"Iruka is waiting for us in a clearing a few minutes away from here. I will explain everything once we get there." Asuma paused waiting to see if the boy was comfortable with his answer. Naruto didn't say anything, but he looked worried.

They started walking down the path in an uneasy silence. A few times it looked as if Kurenai would say something, but she would close her mouth and shake her head. She couldn't find the words, and thought it better to not say anything till she saw the person in question herself.

Naruto didn't say anything at all. It was an oddity for the boisterous boy, but Asuma was glad for his silence. Iruka's situation was more of a 'see to believe' one. He knew how important this night was to Iruka. Although he didn't know the extent of the relationship between his lover and the teacher, he did know the relationship between the teacher and his favorite student. Iruka cared a lot for the orange clad boy, he thought of him as a little brother.

They began to enter the small clearing where they would find Iruka. Asuma did the signal to stay there while he went to check on the teacher's situation. He knew this would do nothing to calm their obvious nerves, but it was a necessary protocol.

He walked further into the clearing and looked into the shadows. He knew that in normal circumstances Iruka would come to him, but the man a hard time moving with the wound on his back. Asuma turned his head towards the sounds of a soft whine coming from the crook of a nearby tree. The familiar feel of Iruka's warming chakra confirmed his whereabouts.

"Iruka, it's just me right now. Kurenai and Naruto will come by at my single." Asuma knelt down next to the large brown wolf and reached his hand out towards his snout. Iruka lifted his head slightly and sniffed at his hand and gave a small bark. Asuma gave a small chuckle and scratched behind his ears. "You guys can come over now."

Naruto had to restrain himself from running over there himself. He couldn't see what Asuma was kneeling in front of, but he recognized Iruka's chakra. He looked over to Kurenai and noticed she shared his confusion. He also saw a small sign of fear in her eyes.

As they came closer to the tree the two figures saw the smoking jonin sitting down next to a large brown wolf. From the smell of blood they assumed that the creature was injured in one form or the other. The wolf was on his side breathing slowly.

"Iruka…" Unlike the young genin, Kurenai's brain has come to some sort of a conclusion. The feel of Iruka's chakra was coming from the wolf itself, not nearby. Iruka somehow was the wolf, and it wasn't a henge. She looked over at Naruto and realized that he was coming to a similar conclusion, hopefully.

"Why is Iruka doing a wolf henge?" Asuma sighed heavily and motioned for the boy to come closer and sit down next to him.

"Naruto, Iruka isn't doing a henge, he _is_ the wolf." Asuma gave Kurenai a grateful smile. He had a feeling Naruto wouldn't understand the situation, but he didn't know what to say to the boy.

The pair looked at the boy as he processed what he was just told. Iruka's current condition wasn't taught at the academy, so everything he would be told would be new information. They watched as the boy bent down closer to Iruka's head and reach out his hand to hesitantly pet the wolf behind the ears.

"I don't know how this is possible, but this is awesome!" Naruto gave Iruka a huge grin and scooted closer to his teacher. He then proceeded to put his large head on his lap and pet him affectionately. Asuma took notice on how Iruka's frame relaxed at his student's acceptance.

"Iruka you have a lot to explain." Kurenai followed Naruto's earlier actions and went to pet his head in a soft caring manner. "However I agree with Naruto when he says this is awesome." Iruka licked her hand and gave a small bark. Kurenai didn't speak wolf, but she understood it as a thank you.

"He isn't dangerous." Kurenai had given Naruto alone time with Iruka and had gone to stand next to Asuma. She wasn't surprised he knew that she what she was thinking. He grasped her hand and gave her a small reassuring kiss. "He used to be a long time ago, but with time, came control. He can be dangerous when he wants to be, but otherwise Iruka is still the same man, just with a tail and paws. He can even understand most of what you say."

"I didn't think this kind of thing happened anymore. I thought," Kurenai gestured towards Iruka. "Was all hunted down so the curse wouldn't affect anyone anymore." Kurenai knew about the 'Curse of the Moon' from training she had received after the academy and old campfire stories from her traveling. She was honestly surprised anyone was affected by it, especially Iruka.

"That's what most people thought until this happened to Iruka. We thought their kind was all extinct, since most hidden villages agreed that they were dangerous to have around. Ibiki and my father thinks that a small clan exists somewhere in the mountains." Kurenai had a surprised look on her face at the mention of the torture expert and the Sandaime.

"How many people know about his condition?" Asuma looked over at Naruto who was petting Iruka and rambling on about how a kid named Kiba would be so jealous. He grabbed his partner's hand and took her over to sit on a nearby log.

"As far as he knows; my brother, father, Ibiki and I. Well you and Naruto as well, but a few others know that found out without Iruka's knowing." Kurenai nodded her head; she understood that Asuma would give her more information latter on. "That bastard Mizuki knows as well."

"I see why this is so important to him then." At the mention of Mizuki's name everything became clear. She understood why tonight was so important to Iruka. The young teacher had obviously told his secret to a man he thought was his friend and was betrayed. Depending on how this evening went down determined how the young teacher would trust people for the rest of his life.

"I'm glad you two accepted the situation for what it's worth. Even if I think Naruto only understands a small percentage of it." Asuma squeezed Kurenai's hand once more and let out a shaky breath he didn't know he was holding. "The poor guy was so nervous about it; he almost walked into a pond on our way here."

"I don't think I'll be able to fully understand his situation, but I do believe Naruto will." It was true, they both knew it. Naruto had a demon inside him far more terrifying then the large wolf before them. It was important for Naruto to accept his teacher like his teacher accepted him. "I just hope Naruto understands that this is a secret."

"The kid might not be a genius ninja, but I think he understands most of the situation to keep that loud mouth of his quiet." Kurenai rolled her eyes and joined Iruka in looking at the pair before them. Naruto was talking happily to Iruka about his new team and how his day had gone. Iruka would bark at the appropriate places and his tail was wagging the happily. Naruto still had his large furred head in his lap, and was scratching Iruka behind the ears in a loving way.

"You know, I think it's funny how you still have this scar on your nose Iruka." Iruka glared at Naruto's observation and turned his head away in embarrassment. Kurenai smiled while Asuma chuckled at the pair's interactions.

When it was time to leave, Iruka had gone up on shaky legs to follow but gave a yelp of pain and fell down. Naruto was back at his teacher's side in an instant and a guilt filled look came across his face when he looked at the wolf's injured back. Iruka sensing the boy's discomfort licked his face to reassure Naruto that he would be fine.

"I'll see you for ramen at lunch Iruka." The boy pulled Iruka into a hug, and the teacher nuzzled his face with his snout.

**Author's Note:**

It is so much easier to use a keyboard then a phone, haha. So this chapter is the ending of this time line. Next chapter will skip ahead to the chunin exams, and will probably end with Naruto leaving to train. Then the chapter after that will focus either during the time skip, or after. For clarification the change from human to wolf was shorter then it was the first time for Iruka. He has control because of how long he has been living with his 'condition' (since he was 12). Next chapter I'm planning on having Kurenai tell Asuma about how her and Iruka came to be friends!

Please leave a reviews, it helps authors like me out in so many ways. I want to know your opinions (good and bad).

Have a great day, and whenever you are down, just stop being sad and become awesome instead. True story.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Asuma watched as the teacher stormed out of the room. He could see his hands shaking and how he was trying to take deep breaths.

"Maybe we should go after him, see if he's okay?" Kurenai gave Asuma a helpless look. She had never seen her friend so angry before. She didn't think he would be so angry about his former students being nominated for the chunin exams. She certainly didn't expect him to start yelling at Kakashi either.

"I think we should just let him cool down, he isn't in the right state of mind. Seeing us might only make it worse." Asuma put his large hand on his lover's shoulder gently. He knew Iruka would be upset about the situation, but he didn't expect to see true rage. Although he knew things went out of hand, he couldn't help agreeing with Kakashi that his students were ready for this.

Kakashi ignored his friends and looked towards the door. He had heard from Naruto that the teacher had a fiery temper, but this went beyond anything he would have expected. Being the genius that he was, he knew there would be an argument about whether his students were ready or not. He was secretly glad that Asuma and Kurenai both felt that their own genin's were also ready for the exam; it meant that the class could be together. When he went to nominate his team he wasn't expecting an actual fight, even if it was completely verbal.

Something about the way the teacher reacted has seemed strange to Kakashi. He knew that the teacher was the 'mother hen' type, but what he saw from the chunin reminded him more of a dog defending her pups. His curiosity was further peeked when the chakra coming from the man felt wild, and oddly out of place. It reminded him of the chakra from one of his nin-dogs.

Kakashi had a mystery on his hands, and his mind was racing with questions that were quickly given answers due to his genius intellect. He knew the answer was in the back of his mind, he just had to find out a few more things in his spare time about the teacher. For now he felt it best to ready his students for the upcoming exams.

…

Raido Namiashi ran to the sound of glass breaking. He stopped in front of the bathroom and listened to see if it was an accident or an attack. He heard hard breathing and someone speaking a low mantra.

"Calm down, calm down…" The mantra continued and Raido instantly knew the situation. A fellow shinobi was having a breakdown, and from the sounds of the mantra and the occasional growling, it wasn't going too well. Having breakdowns was not uncommon in the ninja world, neither was growling; what was strange was the chakra coming from the small bathroom. It felt like it was changing.

"I'm coming in." When there was no answer Raido slowly opened the door. When he looked inside he saw that the mirror in the bathroom had been shattered. The pieces were everywhere and amongst the glass were drops of blood. He looked across the room to see a man with brown hair covering his face. His hands were bleeding and he was shaking violently. He was still saying his mantra of "calm down", and he didn't seem to notice the older man's presence. "Are you alright?"

The mantra stopped and the person's head shot up. Raido looked at the man's appearance and took a step back. His mouth was opened in a snarl, his canine teeth were longer so that they resemble fangs and a low growl came from his throat. What startled the guard most however, were the man's eyes. They were an eerie amber color that seemed to glow in the dim lighting of the bathroom. They were wild and no longer resembled that of a human's.

Before Raido had any more time to react the wild looking man went through the hand signs of a teleportation jutsu and was gone from his sight.

…

Anko was having a boring day at work. With the upcoming exams Ibiki had to interview any potential threat personally. This lead to her being in his office working on paper work, which was a task she hated doing.

Her head shot up at the sound of a teleportation jutsu to the office. It wasn't an uncommon thing, but most people were too afraid to teleport directly into Ibiki's personal office. When she saw the sight before her she was thankful for Ibiki letting her in on her friend's secret.

Before her stood Iruka and from the look of him she could guess that he was trying his hardest not to change into his other form right then and there. He was shaking violently and blood was dripping from his clenched fists, a deep menacing growl was coming from his person.

"Where… is… Ibiki?" She could barely make out the sentence from in between the panting and growls. He was losing it, and Anko had to run him to cell 315 fast. After telling her about the teacher's condition Ibiki had shown her all the necessary steps to follow in case Iruka lost control of his self. She hoped over the desk and went directly behind the teacher, hooked her arms around him and teleported him inside the cell.

"Iruka, Ibiki told me everything after the night you were injured from Mizuki. He had a feeling that you might lose control of yourself, and told me what to do if it happened when he wasn't here." Anko was praying to whatever god out there that the man wouldn't try to kill her on the spot. The only reason she was explaining this situation now was because of the betrayed look in his inhuman eyes.

He nodded only once in understanding and began pushing Anko towards the door. She got the hint and quickly exited. While she was locking the door Iruka was trying to not change till after the appropriate barriers were up. Once they were up he began to focus on the transformation, the quicker he let out his anger the sooner he would be his normal self again.

Anko watched with curious eyes at the man before her. She couldn't hear anything that was going on in the room but she could watch. Ibiki had explained to her that because of how long Iruka had been a Lycanthrope, he could control his mind when he had to change.

The only time he couldn't control his wolf half was when his emotions became too much to handle. Her boss had explained that he would change quickly and violently, and anything about Iruka would be gone. In his place would be an animal fueled by pure animal instinct and almost always rage. He could no longer distinguish between friend and foe, to his new form everyone was prey.

She stared at the wild monster before her. Iruka was now a large wolf. He had a thick coat that was a mix between greys, whites, blacks, but most of it was a dark brown color. The wolf had a scar on his back and one across his large snout. Anko had seen some regular wolves, and she understood that the one before her was bigger and more deadly. The wolf was thrashing against the cell trying to break out. Whenever he swiped a paw new scratch marks would appear in the concrete.

When the wolf looked at her with his eyes, behind all the rage she saw a small sign of pain, human pain. She looked away from her friend and slid down to the ground, her back supported by the door. Ibiki explained to her that it was hard to watch the loving teacher become a monster. Anko didn't expect it to hurt this much.

…

"AH MY EVER HIP AND COOL ETERNAL RIVAL! IT HAS BEEN SO LONG SING YOUR ETERNAL YOUTH HAD GRACED MY OWN!" Kakashi winced at the booming sound of his eternal rival, and best friend. He simply couldn't understand how such a loud man could ever become a ninja.

"Yo." Might Guy ran up to Kakashi and tried to give him a hug, but Kakashi side stepped him and Guy fell to the ground with a large crash. He looked over to his friend's students and studied them carefully. The Hyuga had a scowl on his face that would make even Sasuke jealous and the girl with buns rolled her eyes at Guy's crazy antics. The third genin made Kakashi want to run for the hills, he was an exact copy of Guy. Either his friend had finally found himself a student he could pass his shinobi way to, or the universe hated him.

"Ah, such a cool and hip response from my eternal rival!" Kakashi helped the man up, and gave him a pat on the back. "It seems that our youthful students will go against one another in the upcoming exams." Guy looked around for Kakashi's students, who were not there at the moment. The exams were to start in a few hours and most students were either doing last minute training or receiving luck from their relatives and friends.

"Maah, I'm sure it's gonna be an interesting show this year." Kakashi knew it was. With the 'rookie nine' and Guy's team there was no way it was going to be boring. There were even some rumors about how Sangakure's jinchuriki was going to participate.

"I heard I missed some un-youthful drama at the nominations. It seems my youthful student's old teacher had a terrible breakdown!" Kakashi rolled his eye as Guy began to cry tears of 'youthful manliness,' then noted in pure horror as his clone copied him.

"Yeah, I heard Iruka-sensei freaked out and then disappeared. No one knows where he is." It was the girl with bun's that had spoken this time. Although the freaking out part was true, Kakashi knew nothing about the chunin disappearing.

With that little bit of information however, the final wheels clicked into place. His temper, wild chakra, and strange actions gave the ex ANBU a very good guess on what the teacher's condition was.

…

The next time Kakashi saw the teacher was at the Sandaime's funeral. He was comforting Asuma's nephew by letting the devastated boy cry on his shoulder. He looked over at Kakashi and gave him a small smile. The look of an apology was in his devastated looking eyes. Kakashi gave him a nod to show that he accepted the apology. His current thoughts on the chunin were that the man had a dark secret, was surprisingly scary when angry, was compassionate, and that he let his emotions run everything in his life.

He looked over at Asuma. His friend seemed devastated, but confused. It looked as if he didn't quite believe that his father was dead. Kurenai was close to his side rubbing his back in a comforting manner. Looking at them, Kakashi knew that they were in love. He just hoped Asuma wouldn't screw it up.

Guy looked unnaturally subdued. He was so used to seeing his 'eternal rival's' comical tears that it was unnerving seeing quiet sad ones. He looked to the man's clone and saw that he was the same way.

After the funeral was over he looked at Asuma carrying his nephew on his back walking to his sister in law's house. Kurenai was at his side whispering soft words into both of their ears. He saw the devastation on his friend's face as tears finally fell from his eyes.

This was a devastating day, the Hokage was dead, and the village was destroyed. Many lives were lost, and Orochimaru was back to terrify Konohagakure and its residents. He was also after Sasuke, and Kakashi promised himself he would not allow the man to take that boy.

…

Mizuki looked at the large black wolf before him. In the chaos of the Chunin exams, the jail had been destroyed and many of its residents had either escaped or were killed. The wolf before him had found him and cornered him in a cave outside of the village. He knew that the wolf wasn't an ordinary wolf. It was larger and its chakra was familiar to Iruka's.

"I know what you are." Mizuki knew the wolf could understand him, if it wasn't also human he would have been killed a long time ago. The wolf looked at him with curious eyes and began to shift into a large man with wild looking features and long black hair.

"You are aware of our existence, shinobi." The nude man before him looked slightly surprised but also pleased. He was large and viscous looking, and looked like he could break the silver haired man before him in half. "You must know another of our kind." The larger man looked at the smaller one, when he finally shook his head yes, the black haired man cracked into a predatorily grin. "Will you bring me to him?"

"Yes. But I will only do it on one condition." Mizuki couldn't believe how his luck had gone in the past two days. First he had escaped prison and now he was looking at the man that could help him with his own revenge.

"Anything you want will be done."

"Turn me, and train me."

**Author's Note:**

This was the last chapter that covers background information for the main plot of the story. Next chapter will take place a few years from now and will happen during Naruto's training with Jiraiya, just before he returns to the village.

I have decided to go with the name Lycanthrope for Iruka's condition, and decided Naruto will make fun of him and call him a werewolf.

Ignore the Mizuki's revenge plot, I have my own version.

Thanks for reading!

Mahna Mahna


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Anko ran from her enemy. He was catching up to her and she could feel his killing intent. When she reached the corner of the underground training ground she turned around slowly to face the killer wolf.

Iruka snarled and growled at his prey. He was more than a little pissed about having a large pink bow wrapped around his neck. He was even more upset by the sight of Ibiki Morino quietly laughing at his embarrassing predicament. He was going to kill Anko.

"Come on Ruka, you look adorable!" Anko had her hands over her stomach. She was laughing so hard she was starting to have trouble breathing. It wasn't the first time Iruka questioned to have the crazy special jonin train him. Even if he was seeing a great improvement in his control he promised his purple haired friend a slow and painful death.

It had been Ibiki's idea originally to continue his training from before he was teaching. He was working on shifting to his wolf form on his own terms and controlling his strength and actions while staying in the more difficult form. Iruka was also being taught to harm enemies without his other form's killer instincts coming in.

It had been Anko's idea to work on his tracking and stealth skills. In his human form he could easily keep up with someone from the Inuzuka clan, but in his wolf form he could best a nin-dog. His wolf form also blends well with the shadows of the forest and mountain which would be convenient on certain types of missions.

The only downside to his recent training was how long he could stay in control. The longest he could go in his wolf form without completely loosing himself to the monster was three days. After those three days it was extremely difficult to nearly impossible to get him back in the human mindset so he could shift. Even though the time of staying in wolf form had lengthened over training, Ibiki feared that if Iruka were to stay in the wolf form for too long, the village might lose one of its best teachers forever.

"Iruka go back to your human form and change. We will start with training again next weekend." The wolf nodded and ran off towards a private room in back where he could shift back to human in peace and get redressed. His voluntary change from human to wolf and vice versa happened in the time span of exactly five minutes. It was still painful but it was a number he was extremely proud of.

Iruka still couldn't control the forced changes however; he only took a small comfort in knowing that his mind was still intact when it happened during the three nights of the full moon. He was still terrified of himself when he changes because he loses control of his emotions. Whenever that happens he couldn't remember anything that happened. According to Ibiki and Anko he was a pure monster in that form. The last time that happened was after his argument with Kakashi at the chunin nominations, and Iruka vowed to keep it that way.

With aching limbs he made his way back to his apartment building.

...

"Genma I expect you to do your best. This assignment is dangerous." The senbon user looked at the scroll the Godaime had given him. It was an A-rank mission of infiltration and capture.

"Of course Hokage." Genma teleported to his apartment to gather things for his mission.

Tsunade closed her eyes as yet another stress headache crept in. When she had accepted the position of leader she didn't think it would be this much work. It would have been better if not for the fact that her prodigy insisted on hiding away all of her precious sake.

"He will be fine. The guy may seem like an idiot, and a gossip whore, but he is an extremely talented jonin." Tsunade looked over at the man speaking to her. He was lounging on a chair in her office, his lazy posture she learned to deal with; after all it was the man's intelligence that mattered to her the most.

"I suppose being in charge of those crazy jonin you would know that. Ne, Shikaku?" The man nearly grunted in reply and moved off the chair across the room to sit in the one in front of her. Even though his posture was lazy she could still see how deadly the man was. It reminded her a lot of the brat.

"I have the files you needed from Ibiki. Along with information you might want to hear." Tsunade took the files and dropped them onto one of the many stacks of paper she had yet to go through.

"Is this regarding the situation with your deer and the missing civilians?" Shikaku nodded and Tsunade made sure that every word the Nara spoke was listened to intently.

...

"Iruka- sensei!" Shikamaru looked at his previous teacher with worried eyes. The man had stopped talking in the middle of class and had walked out through the window. Normally the lazy Nara couldn't be bothered with things like this, but something felt off.

The man had seemed to be in a trance of some sort and after jumping out the window he was now going towards the woods. Shikamaru dismissed class and decided to follow the teacher. Iruka was heading in the direction of the mountains through the Nara clan forest.

"Iruka!" He had started to pick up speed now and if he didn't stop soon Shikamaru would have to use his shadows to catch the man. "Troublesome teacher."

Shikamaru began to use the hand signs when Iruka just stopped. He seemed to be out of his trance as his eyes widened and he looked around frantically. The teacher seemed scared, but not of his surroundings. When he finally noticed his former student he was shaking almost violently.

"Did I hurt anyone?" Shikamaru was confused by this statement, he was also confused by the fact that the teacher seemed to have done this sort of thing before. He studied the teacher for a moment and wondered what the man could be hiding. The Nara also wondered why he would hide anything in the first place.

"No, you just sort of jumped out an opened window and went here." Iruka nodded and started walking back through the woods, without trying to make conversation. That would usually be fine with the Nara if it wasn't for the fact that the woods were quiet. "Stop for a moment."

Iruka obeyed his former student and studied the young man's face. He looked worried, like something was very wrong. The teacher began thinking of things he could tell his student without risking too many questions but he always came up short. The sooner he could get to Ibiki the better, but he hadn't seen the Nara boy act like this.

"Do you hear or see anything? Normally this place is crawling with deer, especially since my chakra is nearby." Shikamaru watched as his teacher's face fell from confusion to worry. The man had closed his eyes and had begun sniffing at the air like some sort of animal. When he opened his eyes he could have sworn that for a split second they were different looking.

"Shikamaru, you need to go get help. I smell blood somewhere to the north of here. I'm going to investigate." The Nara nodded and jumped up the trees so he could get to someone sooner. As he jumped form one tree to the next he couldn't help but notice the eerie look in the older man's eyes.

He ran as fast as he could into the village. Considering the circumstances he decided the best person to go to would be someone with the ability to track. When he saw his target he wasn't surprised at all that he was holding a familiar orange book. He also wasn't surprised to see that the man saw him coming and was now putting that book away.

"Yo." Shikamaru stopped before him and began to explain the situation about the blood in the woods. He decided to not tell the jonin about how Iruka had acted strangely earlier. After his story was told, the masked man summoned a familiar looking pug and they followed him out into the forest.

…

Kakashi was worried at what he might find. When talking to Shikaku earlier today the man had explained how several civilians who lived closer to the mountains had been disappearing along with some of his clan's deer. The fact that Pakkun had to cover his nose at the smell of how much blood there was did nothing to calm his nerves.

"Boss, this is going to be bad." Kakashi nodded his head in understanding. He didn't need the summon anymore and excused him to go. He could smell the blood from where he was now, and he was beginning to smell decay mixed with that blood the closer they got to wherever the teacher was.

Shikamaru knew that whatever awaited him was going to be gruesome. He could see the worry on the Copy-nin's face. He looked around the forest to note that the area they were in seemed to be void of any animals or sounds.

When they eventually got to the place Shikamaru wished he had a mask on too. There was blood everywhere, and the blood was coming from several corpses. He recognized a few of them to be deer, but some had been people. The most horrible thing of all was that most of the people were children.

The bodies were almost all dismembered; it was something you saw out of a horror movie. All the visible wounds made it seem that some type of huge animal did it. The smell indicated that the bodies had been dead for more than just a few hours, days even.

Kakashi was glad that he wore a mask. When he looked at the Nara the boy seemed like he was going to be sick any moment. He studied the massacre before him. He noticed the prints on the ground and saw that they belonged to wolves, large wolves. He also noticed that mixed in the carnage there was new blood, and several senbon gleaming in the forest's light.

"Shikamaru, I need you to get an investigation team and cleaning crew out here right now. I'll try to find Iruka." The Nara boy nodded, glad he could leave, and began racing through the trees towards the village.

It didn't take long to find the teacher. He was on all fours panting heavily. From the way his body was shaking violently Kakashi guessed that the man had gotten sick earlier. He was pale looking, and it seemed out of place on the normally tan man. What he noticed most however when they locked eyes was the look of pure anguish in the man's eyes.

"They… they just killed innocent children." Iruka had said this statement quietly, and his voice was filled with grief. He was upset about the other people too, but no child should be slaughtered like a pig and then thrown away to rot somewhere.

Kakashi knelt down besides the younger man and began rubbings soothing circles on his back. Over the years he had found out more about the teacher, he knew how much he cared about the children of the village. He also knew that because these children seemed to be all civilian that they had no chance of survival.

"Kakashi." The silver haired man looked at the chunin's shaking hands. There was a forehead protector with the Hidden Leaf symbol on it. "Whoever did this has Genma."

…

Tsunade looked at the three people before her. Out of the three the teacher looked the most shook up about the situation. He was still shaking but was no longer panting and he looked less pale then when he originally came in.

"Brat, I've read your report and everyone else's and I want you to lead a rescue team to recover Genma." Kakashi gave a firm nod of his head. It was times like this where Tsunade really appreciated how the man could go from perverted to serious in a moment's notice.

"Who should I gather for the team?" The Godaime knew what team she should send out for this mission. Any normal person would send out Kakashi himself with a Hyuga, Inuzuka, or an Aburame. However she was far from normal and so were the circumstances.

"You will go, along with Neji Hyuga." Kakashi nodded and started to head towards the door to get his team together. "I also wasn't you to bring take these two along." If Kakashi was going to object to her choice in members for the team, he wasn't doing it now. He nodded his head once more and jumped out the window.

She studied the shocked faces of both the lazy genius and the temperamental teacher. Shikamaru she noted still had a lazy look to him, but his eyes were confused and curious. The teacher on the other hand looked absolutely terrified.

"Hokage I'm afraid I can't go on this mission, I'm sure by now you understand why." Tsunade knew that the emotional teacher was trying to keep it collected in front of his former student. The first time Tsunade had issued him a mission outside the village he had exploded at her and nearly broke down with the fear that he could hurt someone else. He only agreed to do it after Anko decided to go with him.

"Shikamaru go get ready for the mission, I need to talk to Iruka alone." The boy nodded and left the room. The Godaime gestured for Iruka to sit down, and to her relief he did so without any complaining. "I need you to do this. I know you are scared, but I honestly believe you are more afraid with what other people will think than what you might do."

"You don't understand! I could kill one of them… or… or worse." Iruka was furious now. He couldn't believe Tsunade would risk the lives of others just to have him on a mission. Especially people who were more important to the village then himself, and he knew that two of the three were more than enough to complete the mission. What he feared the most however, was not killing one of them, but turning one of them into a monster like he was.

"I understand your reasoning, but from Ibiki's latest report it seems I can trust you. You are probably one of the best trackers in the village, and are a worthy opponent." She looked at the quiet face of the teacher before her. Tsunade knew she could trust this man with her life if she had to. There was a reason her old teacher took such a liking to the young boy. He was compassionate and had great potential. "You'll never get better unless you go out of the field once and a while. Besides, if the great Sandaime believed in you, so can I."

Tsunade looked at the shocked expression on the teacher's face. He was surprised at the compliment, and she knew how much the old man had meant to him. He really did believe in the boy, she saw his own personal notes in the young teacher's file. Ibiki also believed that his old student could do it as well, and the man had an amazing judge of character.

"They won't reject you either, of that's what you are worried about." She had since gotten up from her desk and was now laying a comforting hand on the man's shoulder. "Right now Ibiki is explaining the necessary points of your condition to the three. Neji and Kakashi already know about Lycanthropy and Shikamaru probably does too from his father. Those three are genius's, but they are idiots too, so really I need you to watch them more then they need to watch you."

"Genius's do tend to be dense." Iruka gave Tsunade a large warm smile and she couldn't help but smile back. The man had a warm feel to him that allowed people to take down their guards. He would make an amazing spy. "I think Kakashi knew beforehand anyways." Tsunade gave away a light chuckle as her answer. The brat did know, and had even confronted her about it. He wanted to know if Iruka was dangerous from the others, and the one no Ibiki had given him seemed to stomp out any doubts he had.

"If Ibiki says you are safe to go on missions, then I do as well." Iruka nodded and gave her another warm smile. He stood up to leave but stopped and looked at the picture of the Sandaime hanging on the wall.

"I'll help bring Genma back to safety." With that said the teacher exited the room. Tsunade looked towards the ANBU stationed outside her office window and motioned him to tell Kakashi to come back in.

"Tsunade it was definitely a Lycan that did all that damage." Tsunade didn't reply. As much as she believed in the young teacher, she needed him on this mission for more than just his tracking skills. "Are you sure he can do this?"

"I have to be brat, no matter how tame Iruka is, he is an exception to the normal rule. Lycanthropes are dangerous creatures, and the best way to kill of the ones doing it is to send one of their own kind after them. I can't risk any more people catching the condition, it would be too dangerous." Kakashi understood the Hokage's decision and he agreed with it. He had seen his fair share of those monsters, and he had killed every one of them without being infected. It was extremely difficult, even for a genius like his self.

"What if he can't do it, kill the others like him?"

"I can't afford to think like that."

**Author's Note:**

This is the longest chapter yet! So the main plot story begins. Poor Genma is the damsel in distress (it's because of the hair).

I hope you all enjoyed the chapter and I'll work on the next chapter as soon as possible!

Mahna Mahna


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

When Genma finally came to the first thing he noticed was a dull pain in the back of his head. Things had gone bad on his way to his mission. He had come across two men stacking bodies in the middle of Nara forest. A fight had gone through and he had been winning at first, till the damn Lycanthropes came in.

He took in his surroundings and noticed that he was being held on cot with multiple chains. He also guessed that he had to be in a cave by the stone walls. There was a small lighting fixture above him that gave the cave a warm glow. It would have been inviting under different circumstances.

When he tried to move his body he noticed that his right leg had been broken in multiple places, same with his arm. By the soreness of gist chest he figured he had bruised a couple ribs. His opponents took him out by throwing him against a large tree, knocking him unconscious.

The senbon user also noted that the only thing covering him was a large blanket. He was completely naked. Genma wasn't ashamed of his body, he was actually quite proud of his lean and muscular build. He just knew that being naked was a ploy used by his enemies to make him uncomfortable.

Genma turned his head when he heard movement outside the cave entrance. A tall figure walked in, the captured ninja figured by the built that he was male. By his side was a cream colored wolf. It was larger than any wolf he had seen and was limping. Upon further inspection the wolf only had three legs.

"I never thought I would catch you, Genma." When the man walked into the light, the special jonin felt his blood boil.

"Mizuki, I thought you were dead." It was true; the whole village thought he was killed in Orochimaru attack.

"Well then I guess my plan worked out okay then." Mizuki smirked down at his prey and threw the blanket off of him. Genma noticed how Mizuki looked at him like a child would look at a new toy.

"You do know this 'plan' of yours will never work out. I was only on a three day mission, eventually people will start looking for me." Genma had hoped that the threat would work to his favor; Mizuki knew he had friends, friends that wouldn't let him down. The widening of his smirk into a wolfish grin didn't make his current situation any worse.

"I'm counting on it." Mizuki pulled a knife out of his pants pocket and walked closer to Genma's bare and chained form. He started pressing the knife to Genma's skin, making shallow cuts all over his body. The senbon user fought back a hiss of pain. "They will probably send some trackers, which are to be expected. They will also send out another person, someone who is similar to how your captors work."

"So I'm guessing you're a monster then." It was his earliest guess the moment he saw the man walk in. On the few times he did guard duty in the prison, Mizuki would always go on about gaining power so he could get vengeance.

"Monster is one way to put it. I certainly thought the same a few years ago, but this raw power is addictive. If more shinobi were told about the positives, there would be more of our kind around." Lycans were creatures many people disliked; Genma was one of the people that hated them. He was certain there was no positive side to becoming a cold blooded killer.

"You said something about someone being able to know how you work. Nobody would let Vermont like you live in the hidden village, much less be a shinobi." As far as Genma knew, the current agreement between all Jonin and higher was to kill any lycanthrope they came across. They were a dangerous breed, which could kill and affect other people.

"Ah, that is where you are wrong. One lives in your village. The Sandaime let him live after they discovered his secret. He was even trained by the torture specialist himself." Mizuki got closer to Genma and pressed the knife across his nose from cheekbones to cheekbone. He didn't leave a mark, but by his captive's gasp he knew he got his point across.

"You're lying." Genma spat out the words with all the venom he could. The man he suggested to be a monster had become his friend in the past few years. He had even woke up in the guy's apartment healed and on his bed after he passed out in the mission room from blood loss. Such a kind man could never be something so hideous.

"Can you believe he is allowed to teach children?" Mizuki gave a crazy laugh and Genma felt his blood go cold. The man was not kidding with him. Iruka Umino was a creature he hated.

...

"So how long have you been like this?" Neji looked at the teacher in front of him. They had been traveling for a few hours and they decided to take a break and set up camp for the night. They were all sitting around a small fire. It was an odd quiet that he did not particularly enjoy, he decided to break the ice by asking the question on everyone's mind.

"About 15 years now." Iruka tried ignoring the pale eyes looking at him. All of his secrets were being told, and he wasn't comfortable about it. Ibiki had told him that if the wrong person found out that they might try to kill him. Lycans were not welcomed people, especially in a ninja village.

"Well, it doesn't matter to me. Ibiki said you're okay, and so did my old man. You're a cool adult in my book." Iruka gave a surprised look to his lazy former student. He was surprised for two reasons, that the boy could accept him so easily and that his father also knew his secret.

"I guess I didn't keep it a secret as well as I hoped." Shikamaru gave a small chuckle and Neji raised an eyebrow. The fourth member of their group only shook his head. The teacher clearly didn't know that more people knew his secret then he thought. A ninja village is impossible to keep secrets in.

"If it makes you feel any better, my dad doesn't care, and I know all the people that personally know you won't care either." Iruka looked at the genius before him and gave him a warm smile. He was relieved to see that his former student and college didn't care about his condition.

"People who know you may not hate you, but most will. I can't say I'm comfortable with the idea." The Nara felt like smacking the Hyuga. He clearly didn't get how sensitive this mission was. If the wild card was insecure their whole plan could go down the drain. While the Nara was slightly angry Iruka understood perfectly. He knew there was hate for his kind; even people that were his friends might hate him if they found out. He could think of several.

"Maa... such a serious conversation. You guys are meeting a real life 'werewolf' for the first time and you can't think of better questions." Iruka glared at Kakashi. He hated being called a werewolf, it made him feel like he was some corny monster from a bad horror movie.

"And what questions would you ask?" The two youngest in the group visibly flinched. They recognized the signs for their teacher's infamous anger, and he was not happy.

"I was going to ask if you liked doing it doggy style. Do you?" Shikamaru rolled his eyes at his superior's stupidity. He looked over at Iruka and knew that the man was going to explode.

"WHAT?" A stick went sailing at the silver haired man's head. He easily dodged but that did nothing to cool down the man's wrath. "What kind of perverted sick question is that? You don't ask people questions like that! What the fuck is wrong with you?"

Neji watched the scene before him with curious eyes. He wasn't comfortable being around a lycanthrope, but his old teacher still seemed the same to him regardless the new information. He was kind and calm one moment, and fiery and angry the next. When Ibiki told him the man was safe he trusted the torture specialist's judgment. The more he thought about the situation the more he found himself being okay with it. He wasn't comfortable yet, but in time he felt like he wouldn't be. There were worst things then Lycans. At least the man wasn't a traitor, or an arrogant council member.

While dodging random projectiles and ignoring death threats Kakashi took time to study the man trying to kill him. He had known for a few years now about his condition but he had never seen the man use it to his advantage. On this mission he would hopefully get to see the positive sides to being a lycanthrope. He was also excited about poking fun at the bipolar teacher. The man was a riot when he was angry or embarrassed.

…

"I need you to change, so I can recognize your markings." Kakashi studied Iruka carefully in case he started to get angry again.

"I have a scar across my snout." Iruka said this statement calmly. The copy-nin got the hint that he clearly wasn't going to change willingly.

"Listen, Iruka. I get that this is uncomfortable for you, it would be for everyone. I'm asking you as a friend to do this, but if I have to order you as team leader to do it I will." Kakashi hoped that there wasn't going to be an argument in the near future.

"It's just… it's personal, but if it's necessary for the mission, I'll do it." Kakashi could see the man's discomfort. He clearly did not want to do this, and Kakashi understood. He was asking the man to unveil a secret, one he's had to live with for fifteen years. The more Kakashi thought about it the more he realized he understood. "What are you…?"

The question died on Iruka's lips, Kakashi had grabbed his shoulder and pushed them both behind a large tree. Know Iruka was looking in Kakashi's face, his bare face. The man had removed his forehead protector _and_ his mask. Iruka took the time to study the older man's face. There was a scar that went from the top of his red eye to the bottom of his lower lip. The lips were thin, and his chin was strong. Iruka noted that his nose was slightly crooked and that his cheekbones were high. The man was handsome in his own way.

"I'm asking you to do something personal. I understand how hard that can be." Kakashi froze when he noticed Iruka was shaking slightly. He wasn't expecting this reaction at all, the man was utterly quiet. "Maa… am I really that ugly?"

"Stupid jonin." Kakashi was surprised when Iruka took his hand and yanked the mask back on his face. "You didn't have to do that, but thanks. And no, you're not ugly."

"Well I guess we better get this show on the road. Do you want to strip right here and change? I could enjoy that" Kakashi chuckled at the red blush that attacked the teacher's features. This man was just too expressive not to tease.

"I'll change by those trees, if you could collect my clothes that would be nice. I guess I'll bark or something to let you know I'm done." Kakashi watched as the man walked away and called in the two other team members with a whistle.

"What did you need?" It was Neji that asked the question, and Kakashi could hear the irritation in his voice. Neji was not happy about the constant being called away and being called back.

"I was finally able to convince Iruka to change." The two nodded in understanding. When the teacher was scouting ahead earlier they came up with this plan. How Kakashi managed to convince him, they didn't know. "Neji remember to memorize how the chakra works in his body. Shikamaru I need you to study him as much as you can. If you need him to do something, just ask."

"I'll need to watch him in action. See his reaction time, and how he moves." Shikamaru had read the file Ibiki gave him, but watching the real thing is always better.

"I'll ask him to go on a hunt, and maybe track one of my dogs. We only have a short time to do this, so we have to think of everything we can now." They turned their heads towards the direction of the trees, waiting for a signal.

They waited patiently for the teacher to finish doing whatever he was doing. It was well past the turning time in Ibiki's folder. Carefully Kakashi decided to head over to the cluster of trees where Iruka said he would change. When he got there, the only thing in that spot were a few footprints and the teacher's folded up clothes.

He was walking back to the others when he heard a shout coming front their direction. He quickly ran there and stopped at the sight he saw.

Shikamaru was on the ground laughing pointing to a very flustered Neji who had a large brown wolf pinning him to the ground. Iruka must have pounced on the Hyuga and was now licking his face. Kakashi started laughing alongside Shikamaru and they both received a death glare.

"Get. Off. Me. Now." Neji was not happy. He was not an animal person, at all. He would have pushed the teacher off, but he was too big, and had caught him. Iruka wined a little and licked his face one last time before backing off. Neji got to his feet and gave his former teacher his best glare.

"Ibiki was right; you are just like an overgrown pup." Iruka growled at Kakashi's comment, and the man just chuckled. While one team mate laughed and the other glared at the wolf, Shikamaru studied it. Iruka was a large wolf, with a strong yet slim build. Shikamaru could see how deadly he was despite the fact that he was acting so friendly. He was certainly glad the man was on his side.

"Let's begin observation. Iruka, show us what you got."

…

"What should we do with the prisoner?" The large black haired man looked down at his new pack member. Over the past three years the man has proved to be a powerful wolf and a valuable beta.

"I would like to keep him alive, so I can get the other alpha here. Other than that, he is your prey Mizuki." The silver haired man visible winced at the sound of his former friend being an alpha, he refused to believe it. Despite the impossible ideas of his own pack leader, he was grateful that the man gave him permission to do whatever he wanted to do to the prisoner.

"Then I shall do what is best for the pack."

**Author's Note:**

Genma is in big trouble, the gang better hurry up! More on why he hates lycan's in the next chapter.

Also I'm looking for some OC names, only two, a boy and girl. Any suggestions?

Also I'm asking my readers, should this be a romance?


End file.
